"With the last of our luggage off the bus and piled onto the chair of the shelter, the old thing slowly pulls away with a friendly wave from the driver. It's a small wonder that it's still around after all these years."
"As the rumble of the tired old engine fades away, it's replaced by nothing but silence. A comfortable, nostalgic silence."
"Looking out from the wooden bus stop, topped by a rusted sheet of iron that only barely keeps the sun out, a bright green expanse greets us."
"The lonely cracked road cuts a straight line between the multitude of farms and rice paddies that cover the valley. A multitude of perfect rectangles, the muddy fields rimmed by embankments of thick grass, and going on as far as the eye can see."
"All that breaks up the view are the wooden poles carrying sagging power lines, trees, and the occasional traditional-style house for the tirelessly working farmers who live here."
"Then finally, the hills of the valley. Rising sharply on on either side of the town, they frame the entire village with their lush woods."
"I'd say memories come back of hiking and messing around in those woods, but that's true of everywhere here. Not one thing in sight doesn't have a memory attached to it. I lived here, from my birth to just three years ago. Now, I'm finally back."
"I've come home."
his "What's up?"
"I turn to my two companions on this trip. In my unexpected nostalgia for the place, I'd forgotten that it was their reactions that I was looking forward to, not my own."
"Suzu couldn't give less of a damn about me, simply standing wide-eyed at the sight before her. You'd be forgiven for thinking she'd just seen the landscape from one of her computer games become real."
"Even Hisao, despite his attention being on me, obviously has his mind in two places at once."
mik "What do ya mean?"
his "You don't have an excuse to look distracted like we do."
"He's not wrong. If I'd left on different terms, or even just taken the chance to visit once or twice, perhaps I'd be totally ambivalent about being back here."
"They see a bunch of farms and woodland, but I see memories of a fate I'd given up on. That I'd wanted, desperately, to give up on. If only life worked like that."
mik "Come on, it's not that weird a place, is it?"
"I give a disarming smile to Hisao, but he doesn't seem to buy the misdirection. It's only now that I realise I've been absentmindedly rubbing the stump of my left arm."
suz "It pretty much is, yeah."
his "I remember seeing places like this in the news, but that's different to actually being here."
his "There's just... nothing."
mik "C'mon, there's plenty of stuff."
suz "Like?"
mik "Farms, the mountains."
his "And?"
mik "...Farms, the mountains."
"Their faces fall flat. Using hyperbole really doesn't work when they already believe it."
mik "I'm joking! That's a joke!"
mik "C'mon, if there are people who live here, that means a bunch of stuff has to be around to support them, right?"
his "I guess that's true."
"He doesn't look convinced. Suzu looks like she didn't even hear me, given that she's begun to wander around and take in the sights from outside the little shelter. It doesn't take long for her to pick up on something from down the road."
suz "Ah, there's a truck coming."
mik "Probably dad. Told you he wouldn't be long."
"She skips back off the road to where we're standing, picking up her duffel bag from the chair. As the old white Kei truck slows down and comes to a stop, the unmistakable figure of my father can be seen taking off his seatbelt and swinging open the door."
"He's a well built man, by any definition. That, in combination with his stubble and his distinct tan from labouring in the fields, would make him an intimidating figure if not for his wide smile. His cheerful expression is always the first thing people notice about him, and for good reason."
"That said, he's not all that well kept, admittedly. His hair is cut badly from doing it himself, his stubble is shaved irregularly, and his fingernails are always blackened from dried mud underneath."
"But that's the kind of person he always was. He loves his work, and he loves people. We might have different personalities, but I always felt a grudging respect for his outlook."
mik "Hey, dad. It's been a while."
"He suddenly lunges forward and wraps his arms around me, much to my admittedly halfhearted protest. I try to shout him down for doing it in front of my friends, but he only lets go after giving me a good shake."
jun "Good to see you, girl. It's amazin' how much you've grown since I saw you."
"I kinda want to joke with him, but I'm having trouble finding the words. It never really hit me how long three years was until now, face to face with my dad after so long. I can feel a really dumb grin on my face."
"After taking a breath to settle myself, I clear my throat and gesture to Suzu."
mik "Suzu, this is my dad. Dad, this is Suzu Suzuki. She's the friend I've talked to you about."
"She bows deeply to him, to which he responds in kind. I wonder if she's trying to mask her shyness about meeting someone new through excessive manners."
suz "Pleased to meet you, Mr. Miura."
jun "You don't need to be so polite. Thanks for putting up with her for so long; I know how much of a handful she can be."
suz "I try my best."
mik "Very funny. Anyway..."
mik "This is Hisao Nakai. He's the other friend from class I mentioned."
"Hisao gives a smaller bow as the two greet each other. I hadn't specifically mentioned much about what Hisao was like to dad, but if he's put off by him coming, he isn't showing it."
jun "I have to say... by the looks of you, I didn't exactly expect you two to be the kind of company Miki'd keep."
his "Is that a bad thing?"
jun "Hahaha! Believe me, she could do a lot worse, boy."
jun "Anyway, the name's Junichi. You can call me Jun or Junichi, I don't care which. 'Mr. Miura' is too damn stuffy."
"Suzu's sly look towards me tells me one thing; Like father, like son. A loud clap from dad refocuses our attention."
jun "Now then, who's in the back tray? We can only fit one person in the front beside me."
mik "Me! Me! I'm in back!"
"Hisao reluctantly raises his hand, resigned to his fate. He's a guy, he should be looking forward to this sort of adventurous thing he couldn't normally do."
"Suzu just shrugs and chooses the front without a fight. To be honest, I didn't expect one."
# timeskip
"It's nice to travel like this. The wind freely blowing past you, the occasional pothole and hump in the road bumping you up and down, and no windows to get between you and the outside world. It's far less boring than being bundled up in a little metal box."
"Hisao, however, looks a little less sure of himself. His right hand grips the side of the tray tightly, with his back pressed hard against the cabin. Our luggage, sitting between us, bumps around loudly as we cruise down the road."
mik "Guess it's your first time travelling on the back of a truck, huh?"
his "I seem to be having a lot of first times with you..."
"He might be grumbling, but I think he's enjoying it. Just a little."
"As we continue down the road, Hisao's head perks up as we pass something that's caught his interest."
his "Wait, was that a pig on that sign?"
mik "Probably a boar. We get those around here."
his "Oh, those things. They look pretty cute, right?"
mik "The piglets? Sure. Gotta be careful, though; boars can be evil little assholes if you piss 'em off."
"A pothole in the road gives us both a good jolt, abruptly ending the discussion. My companion looks a little put off."
mik "Worried?"
his "Nah."
"As time goes on he gets more used to the experience. By the time we turn off the main road and onto the side streets, it almost looks like he's genuinely enjoying himself."
# timeskip
"With the familiar rumble of braking wheels on rough dirt, the truck pulls to a stop a few feet from the house. Without further ado, Hisao and I hop off as the doors around the front can be heard opening."
"It's like I'd never left. The grey-tiled roof still remains pockmarked by the odd leaf and stray broken branch that's settled on it, and the aged wood of the walls serves as a stark contrast to Yamaku's carefully tended-to exterior."
"Glancing through the windows, I suspect dad's been putting a bit of extra effort in to make the place presentable before we arrived. Given that I usually made most of the mess around the house before I left, I doubt it's for my sake."
"The only major difference I can really see is the vines on one corner of the house having grown some more. Given that I've been gone since entering Yamaku, it's like stepping back in time."
jun "So, what do ya think?"
his "It's nice. I haven't stayed at a traditional style house in a long time."
suz "Likewise."
jun "Well, I'm sure you'll get used to it. Feel free to wander around as much as you like, just be careful 'round the farm equipment."
"He quickly walks around the back and dutifully grabs our bags, leaving me to show our guests into the house."
"A good pull sees the door reluctantly slide away with a loud clatter, revealing the entrance foyer inside. With the interior doors having been opened to allow air to circulate through the house, most of the rooms are visible at a glance."
"A lot of friends have said they felt like Yamaku was home after a few months, but I always felt more like a tourist in a foreign country when I was hanging around the dormitories. A school is a school, no matter where it is, but where you sleep and eat is a very different matter."
"It could just because I'm a country bumpkin at heart. Maybe it was because of the circumstances I was in when I first entered Yamaku, or just a matter of being in the female dormitories and couped up with other girls of an evening. Either way, for the first time in years, I finally feel like I'm home."
"I quickly take my shoes off to distract myself from my meandering thoughts, with the busily gawking Hisao and Suzu doing the same. They hurridly walk past me and into the main room after depositing their shoes, leaving me to follow behind them afterwards."
his "I had no idea your place was like this. You should've mentioned it before."
"I just shrug."
"I look to Suzu to guage her reaction, only to see her concerned face staring at her phone. Before I can ask her what's up, she starts wandering around the room haphazardly, barely managing to step around the low table and other various obstacles. All Hisao and I can do is look at each other with puzzled expressions."
his "Uh... Suzu?"
"She continues on as if she's never heard him, walking around some more before slowly making her way towards the rice paper door leading outside, the sun streaming through. Without a moment's hesitation, she slides it open with her right hand, still holding her phone to her face with her left."
"As she steps from the tatami floor onto the sunlit wooden porch, she abruptly stops and holds her phone a little higher than before."
suz "I have a bar."
mik "Huh?"
"Hisao just hides his face in his hand. It takes me a moment to connect the dots about what she's actually been doing."
"Never change, Suzu."
"As I shake my head at her antics, I can't help but notice Hisao smiling. It's not that he does so rarely; all things considered, he manages to put on a weary smile surprisingly often. This time, though, it feels different."
"It's going to be an interesting time here, between being home after so long, and sharing the experience with these two misfits."
"But somehow... I think it's going to be good. The three of us together, enjoying summer in the country."